Stapling machine



Filed July 2, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet March 19, 1929. Y/.\ Z, `KRLJSE 1,705,819

STAPLING MACHINE 'Filed July 2, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 wml; l

M v BY ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 19, 1929.

UNITED STA-TESI PATENT OFFICE.

ALEXANDER Z. REUS-|11, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

summe MACHINE.

Application led July 2,

cludes means for cutting staple blanks froml a strip of material, forming the staples therefrom, and driving or setting the formed staples, the same being in the nature of ail improvement over my co-pending applica tion, 'Serial No.14,500, filed March 10, 1925.'

The present invention comprehends an improvement inthe operating means by the substitution of a spring-actuated trip plunger and an operating lever vfor the impact actuated plunger as disclosed in the pr'ior application, actuating hand with a plunger head.

The present invention further comprehends certain improvements in the strip feeding mechanism which renders the feeding more positive and reliable.l

As a further object, the invention resides in the provision ofv a removable staple guiding element, which facilitates the gaining of Iaccess to the forming anvil and adjacent parts in event of clogging or improper operation.

The invention furthermore contemplates a stapling machine which is comparatively simple in its construction, economical to produce, and which is highly efficient in its purpose.

With the above recited and other objects in view, reference is had to the following specification and accompanying drawings in which there is exhibited one example or embodiment of the invention` which is in no way intended as a limitation upon the scope of the appended claims as it is to be clearly understood that variations and modifications which properly fall within the scope of said claims maybe resorted to when found expedient.

In the drawings- Figure 1 is a side view of a stapling machine constructed in accordance with the invention with the cover plate removed and illustrating the plunger in actuated position;

Fig. 2l is a similar view illustrating the plunger in retracted position and the position of the actuating means immediately prior to the dropping of the'plunger;

Fig. 3 is a *vertical sectional view taken y approximately on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

which eliminates the necessity of the device by the impact of the l 192e. seriai No, 120,228.

Fig. 4 isa similar view taken approximately on the line 4--4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a-detail perspective view of the element for displacing the staple from the anvil;

Fig. 6 is afragmentary horizontal sectional view taken approximately on the line 6-6 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 7 is a similar view taken approximately on the'line 7-7 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is a detail perspective view of the plunger retractinglatch;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary perspective view` of the actuating handle;

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the removable staple guiding lement. Referring to thedrawings by characters `-of reference, the m chine includes a casing 10 having a removable section 11 secured to the casing 10 by any suitable means which facilitates its removal. Formed as a part of and projecting from the casing is a housing 12 having integral therewith a handle 13 and adapted to house a, spool 14 rotatably mounted on a spindle 15 and having wound thereon a strip of material 16l from which the staples are formed. The housing 12 also contains a straightening device 17 between one of the rollers 18 of which and a springpressed locking pawl 19, the strip of material 16 is trained, the pawl serving to permit of the movement of the strip in a direction to 'unwind the same from the spool while preventing retrograde movement thereof. The housing further contains a bell crank lever 2() fulcrumed at l21 and .provided, respectively, 22 and 23. The arm 23 carries at the free end a strip-gripping device 24 of a type which grips the strip upon' movement of the arm in a direction toward the casing to unwind the strip, and release the strip upon movement of the arm in a direction away from the casing for effecting a feeding of the strip upon rocking movement of the bell crank. A spring 25 is connected lat one end to the arm 23 and at its opposite end tothe housing 12 for exerting a tension to normally move the arm and strip-grip ing device in a direction tofeed the same rom the reel or spool toward the casing '10.

with angular disposed arms l Secured within the casing is a stationary is mounted within the casing for movement toward and away from the anvil and said plunger is formed at its lower end with a bifurcated head 31, the fureations 32 and 33 of which are spaced apart a distance equal to the width of the upper face of the anvil, plus approximately twice the thickness of the strip 16 from which the staples are to be formed. The plunger is provided intermediate its ends with an element 34 presenting an abutment shoulder 35 between which and the upper end of the casing a coiled expansion driving spring 36 is interposed for normally effecting a downward movement of the plunger and plunger head toward the anvil.

In order to provide means for retracting the plunger and placing the spring 36 under compression or tension, an operating lever 37 is provided, which is fulcrumed at 38 for swinging movement. The lever 37 is of substantially inverted U-Shape in crosssectional configuration, and its Jforward end is bifurcated to provide furcations 39 spaced apart suiiciently to straddle the convolutions of the spring 36. The furcations 39 have pivoted therebetween adjacent the free ends, a plunger retracting latch 40. on a cross pivot 'pin 41. The latch 40- is provided with a normally upwardly inclined hooked lower end 42 which is designed to engage1 the abutment shoulder 35 formed I by the element 34, the hooked end or nose 42 being normally urged and maintained in engagement with the shoulder 35 by a leaf spring 43 attached to the latch with the free end ridable on the inner surface of the outer wall 44 of the'casing 10. The upper face of the 'element 34 directly above the shoulder 35, is beveled downwardly and outwardly as at 45, to permit the hooked end or nose 42 to ride downwardly and swing outwardly over and engage under the shoulder after the plunger has been driven toward the anvil to the limit of its movement upon return of the operating lever 37 to its normal position by means of the leaf spring 46. vIn order to trip the latch to disengage the hooked end vor nose 42 from the shoulder 35, the furcations 39 are slitted upwardly at an angle from their lower ends, as at 47, and portions 48 are bent inwardly' to provide shoulders constituting means adapted to engage and swing the latch to a released position when the operating lever is swung downwardly to ap proximately the extreme limit of its downward position. In order to cushiony the downward movement ofthe plunger toward the anvil, when the latch is tripped, ,a buffer spring 48a lis provided, which sets within a stationary split sleeve 49 within the casing 10, the upper end of the normally expanded buffer' spring being adapted to be engaged by the element 34 on the plunger. The lower end of the furcations 32 and 33 of the plunger head are curved inwardly and upwardly as at 50 while the fui-cation 33 is formed with a lower beveled cuttingl edge 51. The strip guiding sleeve 28 is formed with a complementary beveled cutting edge 52 past which the beveled edge 51 slides for severing a section of the strip 16 to constitute a staple blank. By severlng the section at an angle, it is obvious that the ends of the blank will presentl points to facilitate the driving of the formed staple into an-` choring relation within the article into which the staples are driven.

In order to provide means for displacing the staples laterally from the anvil after the same are formed thereon, a displacing element 53 is provided, which is fulcrumed on a pin 54 and which is provided with forked ends y55. A spring56 mounted in a recess 57 in the casing 10, normally tends to swing the displacing element-53 laterally for effecting the displacement of the staple from the anvil. The forked ends are pro.- vided with beveled portions 58 which are engaged by the furcations-32 andk 33 when the plunger head is in its lowered position for swinging and holding the displacing 'element 53 inactive against the tension of the spring 56.

Removably mounted within the lower end of the casing alongside of the anvil 26, is a suitable staple receiving and guiding element 59 having a vertical recess or guide-.

way 60 of a size to snugly receive the staple when displaced from the anvil. One side edge of the member 59 is formed with a semi-cylindrical recess 61 withinwhich the projecting portion of a ball latch 62 is normally pressed by a spring 63 for removably holding the staple receiving and guiding element in place, a notch 64 being formed at the upper end of said element for the reception of a screw-driver or other instrument to forcibly eject the same. The

plunger head' is also provided with a staple' driving and setting member 65 offset with respectto` and arranged parallel and alongside of the furcations 32 and 33 to move in the recess or guideway 60 of the staple receiving or uidin element, whereby to contact with t e big t of alaterally displaced staple and drive the same through the guideway and from the lower end of the casing.

In order to provide means for swin ingl thearm 23 of the bell crank 20 away rom the casing 1() and for causing the strip gri ping element 24-to obtain a fresh grip on tige strip 16, a leg 66 is fulcrumed at 67 between the forks or furcations 39 of the operating lever 37, the said leg being provided with a 'rearwardly projecting cam foot 68 engageable with the cam arm 22 of the' bell crank lever for exerting a lift on the same when the operating lever is manually moved downwardly. I y

In operation, assuming the parts to be in the normal position illustrated in Fig. l, the operator grasping the handle 13 with the fingers, exerts a downward pressure on the operatin lever 37, with the heel of the hand, against t 1e action of the leaf spring 46 and the driving spring 36. This raises the forked or bifurcated forward end 39 of the lever, causing the plunger retracting latch 40 engaged with the shoulder 35, to raise or retract the plunger and simultaneously to raise the leg 66 and foot 68.l The raising of the foot 68 in engagement with the arm 22 of the bell crank, cams lthe arm 22 and swings the arm 23 and the strip gripping element 24 rearwardly, it beingunderstood that the strip gripping element freely moves over the strip 16 which is prevented from retrograde movement by the spring-pressed pawl 19. The strip-gripping element moves an appropriate distance to effect the feeding of a length of strip equal approximately to the distance between the outer Aside edges of the furcations 32 and 33. When the leg 66 has moved upwardly a predetermined distance the cam foot 68 is cammed off the cam arm 22, releasing the same so that the spring 25 swings the arm 23 in the opposite direction to` effect the feeding of a length of the strip 16 across the face of the anvil. Continued movement of the operating lever downwardly swings the furcations 39 thereof upwardly to a point where the shoulder portions 48 engage with and swing the plunger retracting latch outwardly against the laction of the leaf spring 43 until the nose or hooked end 42 is disengaged from the shoulder 35, thereby releasing the driving spring 36, which forcibly effects a downward driving movement of the plunger and plunger head. The downward movement initially causes the cutting edge 51 coacting with the cutting edge 52, to shear the portion of the strip extending across the upper face of the anvil. When the operating handle 37 is released, the leaf spring 46 swings the same upwardly and the furcations 39 downwardly, moving the arm 66 downwar ly where the cam 68 rides over the cam arm 22 and re-engages with the same preparatory to the next operation. The initial upward movement of the plunger by the next operation of the machine permits the swinging movement of the element 53 under the action vof the spring 56 to engage and displace the formed staple where it is -positioned in therecess or guideway 60 o'f the element 59. This clears the anvil for the feeding of a new section of the strip 16 across its face. In order to guide and hold the portion of the strip into engagement with the upper face 27 of the anvil, a laterally projecting pin69 is' provided which is spaced from and overlies the anvil.

In event of clogging or improper operation, the strip receiving and guiding element 59 may be readily removed by the insertion of a screw-driver or other instrument .in the notch 64 to exert suficient force for displacing said element against the action of the spring-pressed.retaining ball latch 62.

What is claimed is:

1'. In a machine 'for cutting olf staple blanks from a strip of material, forming staples from the cut-off blanks and setting the staples Ithus formed including a casing, a.. stationary anvil and a plunger therein,y

means for actuating the plunger, compris ing a spring for driving the plunger toward the anvil, an operating lever, interengageable means on the plunger and lever for connecting t-he plunger with the lever tol effect B5 its retraction and the compression of thei in, means for actuating said movable element comprising a plunger by which the movable element is carried, a spring ,for normally driving the plunger and movable element toward the stationary element, a

lmrmipulating lever, a plunger retracting latch on themanipulating lever, means'on the plunger engageable by the latch, and means on the lever engageable with the latch for tripping and releasing the same upon predetermined retractive movement of the plunger, said last-named means comprising inwardly extending shoulders.

3. In a stapling machine for cutting 0H and forming staples from a strip of ymaterial and for driving and setting the staples thus formed including a casing, an anvil therein over which lengths of the strip are fed,

interengageable llO relatively movable plunger having strip cut'- .ting and .staple forming and staple driving elements carried thereby, operable upon movement of the plunger toward the anvil, a-'driving spring for normally driving the plunger and said elements toward the anvll,l

means for retracting the plunger, placing the spring under tension and releasing the plunger, comprising a lever, a`shoul er on the plunger, a plunger-retracting llatch on the lever, latch-tripping camming means on the lever, rockable strip-feeding means, and

means connected with .the plunger for actuating said strip-feeding means upon each operation of the manipulating lever.

4. In a machine for cutting off sections of a strip of material, forming staples from the cut-off sections, and driving and setting the staples thus formed including a casing, a stationary anvil therein, a plunger within the casing having a head provided with stripcuttingand staple forming elements and a setting element in a different plane therefrom, a spring for driving the plunger toward the anvil, an operating lever, interengaging means 011 the plunger and lever for retracting the plunger from the anvil and compressing the same, and trip means on said lever Jfor dis-engaging the said interengaging means on the plungerl and lever upon predetermined movement .of the plunger away from the anvil, whereby driving movement of the plunger by the spring initially cuts oi a section of the strip and Subsequently forms over the anvil a staple from said section, while simultaneously driving and setting a previously formed staple. 1

5. In a machine for cutting off sections of a strip of material, forming staples from the cut-off sections, and driving and setting the staples thus formed including a casing, a stationary anvil in the lower end thereof, a plunger guided in said casing having a head forms over the anv a staple from said secprovided ywith a strip-cutting portion and with staple forming and -setting elements, a spring for ldriving the plunger toward the anvil, an operating lever, interengaging means on the plunger and lever for retracting the plunger from the anvil and com-y pressing the same, trip means on said lever for disengaging the' said interengaging means on the plunger and lever upon predetermined movement of the plunger away from the anvil, whereby driving movement of the plunger by the spring initially cuts off a section of the strip and subsequently forms over the anvil a staple from said section, while-simultaneously driving and setting a previously formed staple, and means in the casing operated when the plunger is retracted, for displacing a formed staple from the anvil and subsequently feeding a length of theistrip across the anvil, whereby a previously formed displaced staple is positioned in the path of movement ofthe staple-driving and setting element and the length of ,strip fed across the anvil is disposed in a l ycompressing the same,` trip means on said lever for disengaging the said interengaging means on the plunger and lever upon predetermined movement of the plunger awayfrom the anvil, whereby driving'movement of the plunger by the spring initially cuts off a section of the strip and subsequently tion, while simulta eously driving and setting a previously ormed staple, the said `machine including a staple receiving and guiding element, and means operated when the plunger is retracted for displacing a formed staple from the anvil and positioning the same in a staple receiving and guiding element, said displacing means comprising a fulcrumed plate having formed ends and beveled portions adapted to be engaged by the descending plunger and moved to inactive position, the said staple receiving and guiding element being removably mounted in the machine to facilitate the gaining of access to the staple forming anvil for removing clogged or malformed staples.' y

AniDemone z. KRUSE.A 

